Collar blank tensioning unit



Filed April 28, 1953 WM 11 1? MW 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 mm W Oct. 30, 1956 BlHALY 2,768,592

COLLAR BLANK TENSIONING UNIT Filed April 28, 1953 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 ML fiymw R k/Q Mvk Oct. 30, 1956 BIHALY 2,763,592

COLLAR BLANK TENSIONING UNIT Filed April 28, 1953 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Oct. 30, 1956 B IHALY 2,763,592

COLLAR BLANK TENSIONING 'UNIT Filed April 28, 1953 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR LAJOS BIHALY.

DESZOE STEINHERZ ATTORNEY- United States Patent COLLAR BLANK TENSIONING UNIT Lajos Bihaly, London, England, assignor to Trubeuised Company (Registered Trust), Vaduz, Liechtenstein Application April 28, 1953, Serial N0. $511,633

Claims priority, application Luxembourg May 2, 1953 11 Claims. (Cl. 112-2) In the manufacture of multi-ply one-piece collars, i. e. collars in which each ply is cut in one piece, particular difliculties are encountered in the correct location of the foldline. Those difficulties have so far prevented a largescale manufacture of this type of collar in spite of its superior qualities and convenience of manufacture in comparison with the conventional two-piece collar. In a two-piece collar the seam uniting the separately cut band and top pontions of all the collar plies automatically produces in the ready-made collar a folding tendency along the seam whereby the foldline is properly determined and located. There is no such collar band scam in the onepiece collar and, accordingly, other means must be provided to produce the required exactly localized folding tendency. Such a folding tendency must be produced on the boundary between the collar band and top portions and must be permanently maintained throughout the useful life of the collar and unimpaired by repeated laundering. Furthermore, the one-piece collar offers the problem of locating the foldline in correct relation to the final marginal contour of the collar.

In the collar industry a great variety of methods. and means have been developed for the determination of the foldline in a one-piece collar. It is a common feature of all these methods to give the foldline zone reduced resistance to bending in comparison with at least one of the adjacent collar zones. In one-piece collars of any type, such as soft collars, starched collars and chemically stiffened or fused collars, this discontinuity of the bending resistance may beb rought about by making one of the collar plies discontinuous by omitting one of the plies in a narrow zone along the foldline. However, such collars in which for example the lining ply is. in two parts have no longer the advantages of a true one-piece collar. In true one-piece collars there is the possibility of reinforcing one of the zones extending along the foldline by incorporating a further ply into a portion of the collar or by inserting a narrow strip of material between the normal collar plies, one margin of such additional ply or inserted strip extending along the foldline. These and similar constructions act purely mechanically by locally reinforcing or weakening the multi-ply collar structure.

In fused as well as in starched collars the same result may be obtained by dififerentiating the degree of fusion or starchability. In this case, too, there is used a narrow tape. which extends along, preferably immediately below, the foldline zone and which brings about an additional stiffening or increased starch absorbing capacity. It is also possible. to reduce the stiffness or starch absorbing capacity in the foldline zoneitself, this result being achieved either by the application of a tape extending along, the foldline and having fusion-preventing properties when used in a fused collar or starch repelling properties when used in a starched collar, or by covering a narrow zone along the foldline on at least one of the plies with a resist preventing adjacent plies of a fused collar from being fused in the foldline zone.

Fused collars further offer the possibility of using a lining ply woven with a non-adhesive zone having the curvature required for the foldline.

All these proposals, however, only relate to the problem of producing a permanent folding tendency about a line representing the foldline of the collar and are not con-- cerned with the further problem of locating this foldline in correct relation to the final marginal contour of the collar.

During recent years, considerable research activity has been devoted to this latter problem in an attempt to further mechanize the manufacture of one-piece collars with a view of rendering the manufacturing process independent of the manual skill of the worker, both in determining the exact marginal contour of the collar and in applying the foldline determining means, as well as in coordinating the position of the foldline with the final marginal contour of the collar. This research work has led to the development of automatically guided collar sewing machines and of automatic devices for correctly localized application of foldline determining means on one of the collar plies, for example of a particularly advantageous tape consisting of a specific strip material comprising two longitudinally extending zones of different characteristics. In the manufacture of fused onepiece collars it has proved particularly difficult to cor rectly dispose a multi-ply collar structure or a single collar ply on which either of the critical lines of the collar (contour of foldline) is preliminarily or finally established, in cooperative relation, predetermined by said established line, to devices for establishing the other one of said critical lines, in order to secure at least substantial coordination between the location of the contour and. that of the foldline.

The Swiss patent specification 277,272, filed August 23, 1949, describes a coordinating arrangement in which a multi-ply one-piece collar structure having a substantial part of the contour established by a stitching line is placed on a template representing the final outline of the collar, said template in turn being disposed in fixed spatial relation to means for applying a foldline determining tape. In this way the template enables a pre-established contour line represented by the aforesaid marginal stitching line to be exactly co-ordinated with foldline determining means to be applied later. Also, in the present state of the collar-making art it is possible to secure a collar structure comprising a plurality of loosely superimposed plies in a holder between clamping elements shaped in accordance with the desired final contour of the collar, and to unite the plies by stitching along the outer periphery of the clamping elements whereby the contour is correctly established (British patent specification 366,334, filed March 25, 1931). Evidently, in this, case, the foldline determining element or means can be applied only after removal of the stitched structure from the holder. A strictly mechanical coordination of the position of the foldline and the marginal contour of the collar accordingly again requires the use of a template as described in Swiss patent specification 277,272 or of a similar coordinating arrangement.

However, it is obviously desirable that the collar plies should be held without interruption by the same holder during all the working steps preceding the turning and finishing, i. e. while the plies are stitched and the foldline determining means are applied. Further, the holder should preferably be such that both stepsstitching and application of foldline determining means-may be performed in either sequence.

It is the main object of the present invention to provide a method and means for achieving the aforesaid aims.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will appear from the following specification in connection with the appended drawings.

In order that the invention may he more easily understood a specific embodiment of the apparatus and method will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which- Fig. 1 is a flow sheet illustrating a lay-out of apparatus means for sewing a contour seam and applying a foldline determining strip;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of an embodiment of the holding device according to the invention;

Fig. 3 is a plan view, partly in section, of a portion of the carrier bar and of one of the end pieces of the holding device illustrated in Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a side elevation of the same end piece;

Fig. 5 is a plan view of part of the other end piece together with part of the carrier bar;

serting table adapted to cooperate with a holding device i according to the invention;

Figs. 9 and 10 are diagrammatic side views illustrating the initial and final phases respectively when the holding device according to the invention is placed into the blank inserting table;

Figure 11 is a perspective view, with the central portion broken away, of a complete loading table incorporating the parts shown in Figs. 6-8;

Fig. 12 is an enlarged horizontal section;

Fig. 13 is an enlarged transverse section along line 12-12 in Fig. 12 and Fig. 14 is an enlarged perspective view of parts of the carrier bar of a holding device according to the invention, cooperating with corresponding holding elements of a machine used in the manufacture of collars.

In the apparatus lay-out according to Fig. l the central apparatus is a sewing machine provided with an automatic mechanism for guiding a collar structure inserted into a holding device 1 according to the invention past the needle of the sewing machine in a path required for the production of the contour determining marginal line of stitching. I is the sewing and guiding unit, II is a blank inserting table on which the plies forming the collar structure are inserted into holding device 1 as will be described later. III is a device for applying a foldline determining strip or tape on the outermost ply of the collar structure held in holding device 1. It will be readily appreciated that the sequence of working steps may be altered in such a way that the foldline determining strip or tape is applied to the inserted collar structure prior to the stitching. Further, it should be understood that in lieu of sewing unit I and tape applicator device III as illustrated in Fig. 1 any other apparatus for establishing or marking the contour and the foldline may be used, as the same holding device is obviously equally serviceable in connection with such other apparatus means.

Fig. 2 shows an advantageous embodiment of the holdmg device according to the invention generally designated as 1 in Fig. 1. In the device a collar structure 2 is inserted, this structure comprising three superimposed plies the uppermost of which will generally be the lining ply. Dash line 3a indicates a contour determining stitching line that may have been produced by means of sewing unit I, while dash line 3b indicates the location of a foldline determining strip that may be applied to collar structure 2 by means of apparatus III.

The main parts of the holding device 1 are the carrier bar 4 and the end pieces 5 and 6 the construction of which will be more elaborately described below. For a proper understanding of Fig. 2 it will be sufficient to explain that collar structure 2 is attached to both end pieces with the aid of rows of needles on which it is held by means of hinged caps. Thus the collar structure is held at two approximately opposite places, the end pieces being spaced so much from each other that the rows of needles will seize the collar structure outside the intended final marginal contour.

In the embodiment shown in Fig. 2 the end pieces 5 and 6 are not disposed so as to form right angles with carrier bar 4 but diverge slightly from said bar. In the embodiment illustrated in detail in Figures 3 and 5 the end pieces form right angles with the carrier bar. Whichever embodiment is chosen in each individual case depends on the particular conditions of manufacture, such as the shape of the collar to be manufactured.

Figures 35 illustrate details of the end pieces 5 and 6 and their constructive connection with carrier bar 4. In this embodiment end piece 5 is slidingly mounted onto said carrier bar and is provided with means for tensioning the collar structure in one direction, whereas end piece 6 is adjustable on the bar in accordance with the collar size to be manufactured but otherwise adapted to be stationary on the bar while the holding device is in use.

As appears from Figs. 3 and 4, end piece 5 essentially consists of 3 parts, viz. a glider-piece 10, a holder arm 11 rigidly connected with glide-piece 10, and a cap 13 swingable about hinge 12 in glide-piece 10. Holder arm 11 is provided with a row of needles 14 pointing towards cap 13. The needles are about 7 millimeters long, have a diameter of about 0.6 millimeter at their root and are spaced about 1 centimeter apart along a straight line extending longitudinally of holder arm 11. When cap 13 is swung about hinge 12 the needles are exposed. A spring 15 has one end attached to glide-piece 10 and the other to cap 13 is such a way that the latter is constantly urged towards holder arm 11 to cover the needles. A pin 16 laterally extending from cap 13 in the direction of bar 4 serves to lift cap 13 to uncover the needles, as will be described later. The glide-piece 10 completely surrounds the carrier bar 4 which has a square cross section. At the extreme outer end of the glide-piece 10 a shaft 17 is inserted across the bore of the glide-piece, said shaft 17 extending at right angles to the walls of the bore in the direction of the holder arm 11. Midway between opposed inner wall surfaces of the glide piece bore, shaft 17 carries a roller 18, the location of shaft 17 and the diameter of roller 18 being such that roller 18 protrudes 1 to 3 millimeters from the end surface of glide-piece 10. Between a pin 19 extending across the bore of the carrier bar inwardly of the glide piece and a fork member 20 having a pair of arms journalled on shaft 17 and gripping about roll 18 there is inserted a coil spring 21 urging glide-piece 10 outwardly on said bar. The tension of coil spring 21 should be such as to exert a comparatively powerful pressure in the relatively narrow range between the position of the glide-piece 10 on bar 4 illustrated in Fig. 3 and the most deeply inserted position in which shaft 17 abuts against the end of bar 4. Obviously stop elements (not shown) may limit the outward movement of glide-piece 10 on bar 4 under the action of spring 21.

The holder arm 11 is at its free end provided with a beaded edge 22 the function of which will be described later.

As appears from Fig. 5, end piece 6 corresponds to end piece 5 as far as the construction of the following parts is concerned: holder arm 11a, hinge 12a, cap 13a, spring 15a, pin 16a and the holding needles. Glide-piece 10a does not have a shaft corresponding to shaft 17 and is accordingly adapted to glide freely on carrier bar 4, the latter being provided, at regular intervals of 1 centimeter, with holes 36, 37, 38 etc. to 44, 45 corresponding to the usual collar sizes. A locking-screw 50 enables end piece 6 to be locked in one of said holes and thereby to be adjusted to any desired collar size to be manufactured.

The end of bar 4 which carries end piece 6 is provided with a roller 18a, this roller having no function in connection with the adjustment of end piece 6 but serving to facilitate the insertion of the holding device into a work piece inserting table.

When the holding device shown in Figs. 2-5 is to be used a collar structure comprising three plies is pinned on the needles 14. In the absence of the specific tensioning device according to Figure 3 this may be simply done by hand.

However, if the particular tensioning device is used the provision of a blank inserting table is desirable, such table being preferably provided with means which, at the same time (i) exactly determine the location of the holding device, (ii) bring about a lifting of the caps, and (iii) shift end piece 5 to its innermost position so that when the holding device is removed from the table the inserted collar structure is tensioned between the end pieces by shifting end piece 5 outwardly under the action of spring 21.

Figs. 6-8 illustrate the main elements of the blank inserting table shown as a whole in Fig. 11, Fig. 6 showing the end portion of the table corresponding to end piece 5 and Figs. 7 and 8 showing parts on the other side of the table corresponding to end piece 6.

End portion 51 corresponding to end piece 5 has three main working elements: As appears from Figs. 9 and 10, fork 52 serves as a fulcrum for the beaded edge 22 on the free end of holder arm 11. As appears from Fig. 10, guide bar 53 is adapted to cooperate with pin 16 on cap 13 in such a way that when the holding device is inserted into the table cap 13 is lifted against the action of spring 15. Cam bar 54- is attached to the blank inserting table in such a position that upon the insertion of the holding device roller 18 and thereby end piece 5' is shifted inwardly until shaft 17 abuts against the end face of carrier bar 4. Qbviously this way of working requires a similar cam bar to be provided on the opposite side of the blank inserting table corresponding to end piece. 6, such further cam bar being adapted to cooperate with roller 18a. It will be understood that by the cooperation of the cam bars with rollers. 13 and 18a the location of the holding device in the blank inserting table is exactly determined in longitudinal direction. However, with respect to the adjustability of end pieces 6, fork 52a and guide bar 53a on that side of the table which is adapted to cooperate with end piece 6 must be arranged for adjustment longitudinally of the holding device. For this purpose parts 52:; and 53a are. provided with extensions in the plane of the inserted holding device, elongated holes 55 and 56 being provided in the said extensions. Gn the corresponding end portion of the blank inserting table, threaded bolts 57 and 58 are provided, each adapted to extend through one of said elongated holes 55, 56 in such a manner that fork 52a and guide bar 53a may be adjusted to any position corresponding to the various adjustments of end piece 6 on carrier bar 4. Parts 52:: and 53a may be secured in the adjusted positions by means of wing nuts (not shown) screwed on said bolts.

Figures 9 and 10 illustrate the insertion of a holding device according to the invention into the blank inserting table. By inserting the free ends of end pieces 5 and 6 in a downwardly inclined position into forks 52, 52a and thereafter lowering carrier bar 4 while the beaded edges 22 serve as pivots about which the whole device is turned, the holding device is inserted into the table in a position which is exactly determined by forks 52, 52a and cam bars 54. While the holding device is inserted guide bars 53, 53a lift caps 13, 13a, and end piece 5 is shifted by cam bar 54 to its innermost position on bar 4. Now a three-ply collar structure is put on the needles 14 in an entirely smoothedout condition but without tension in any direction. Then the holding device is again turned to the position according to Fig. 9. Under the action of springs 15 and 15a caps 13 and 13a are closed and end piece 5 is urged outwardly on bar 4 by the action of spring 21 whereby desired tensioning of the inserted collar structure is obtained,

To facilitate. the handling of the device 1 it may be desirable to provide holding elements. on the side of the blank inserting table extending below bar 4 of an inserting holding device, in order to secure the holding device firmly in position in the table on all four sides. In the embodiment illustrated such holding elements consist of one or more U-shaped parts 59 (one shown), the horizontal portion of which supports bar 4 on the required vertical level and the vertical portion of which outwardly abuts against the rear surface of bar 4 to prevent beads 22 from losing contact with the bottom of forks 52, 5251.

As the holding device according to the invention must at any rate be provided with locating elements by means of which it is inserted in exactly located position into the collar manufacturing apparatus, having corresponding holding elements, the inserting table, instead of being provided with the described U-shaped parts, may be provided with such holding elements corresponding to the locating elements of the holding device.

Figs. 12-14 show an embodiment of such locating elements provided on the carrier bar 4 for correctly localized insertion of the holding device into contour or foldline determining apparatus provided with holding elements corresponding to the locating elements.

On the side opposite the holder arms the carrier bar 4 is provided with locating elements 60, one of which is shown in Figs. 12 and 14. The apparatus into which the holding device according to the invention is to be inserted are in their turn provided with preferably U- haped holding elements 61 the mutual distance between which corresponds to the spacing between the locating elements 6t) in such a way that when bar 4 is inserted into the holding elements 61 the locating elements 6% will outwardly or inwardly abut against the holding elements 61, thereby exactly determining the location of the holding device and of the collar structure inserted therein in relation to the apparatus in question.

As the friction of the sewing needle or the adhesive effect of the tool for applying the foldline determining tape may tend to lift the holding device, the carrier bar 4 is preferably provided on the side opposite to the holder arms 11, Fla with a releasable latching device counteracting these lifting forces. This latching device which is preferably duplicated consists of the latch proper 62 which extends from the hollow interior of the carrier bar 4 through slots in said bar 4 toward one panel of one of the U-shaped holding elements. The inner face of this panel of the U-shaped holding element is provided with a groove 63 adapted to receive the latch 62 of an inserted carrier bar 4. A powerful leaf spring 65 extends through the bore of the bar 4, said leaf spring 65 being rigidly attached to the bar by means of a bolt .64- extending across the bore in the central portion of the bar. The free ends of leaf spring 65 extend towards the ends of bar 4 to points beyond latches 62 the latter being attached to a side face of leaf spring 65. At each of the free ends of leaf spring 65 there is attached an arm 66 which extends from a side face of spring 65 through an aperture 67 on the same side of the bar as the latch and which is outwardly of bar 4 provided with a knob 68. By depressing knob 68 the leaf spring is deflected in such a way that the corresponding latch is retracted into the interior of the bar. Thus, when the holding device is to be inserted all the knobs 68 must be depressed; then the carrier bar 4 may be inserted in correct location as determined by the locating elements 60 into the U-shaped holding elements 61 and will be secured in this position by the latches 62 entering grooves 63 under the action of leaf spring 65 as soon as knobs 68 are released.

It will be understood that with the use of a holding device according to the invention in an apparatus lay-out for the manufacture of collars it is only necessary to provide all the machines used for performing working steps onthe inserted collar structure with holding eleing elements 61.

ments 61 in predetermined positions, thus ensuring cor- -rect location of the holding device and hence of the .collar' structure in relation to the apparatus in question. Thus in the arrangement shown in Fig. 1 both the automatic guiding mechanism of sewing machine I and tape applicating device III will be provided with hold- The holding device according to the invention enables a framed collar structure to be exposed in turn to the action of various apparatus, the correct location for performing a specific working step in any such apparatus being automatically determined by the cooperation of the locating elements 60 on the holding device and of the holding elements 61 on the apparatus in question. It is thus no longer necessary to rely o the skill and diligence of the operator in the coordination of several working steps whereby the greatest possible uniformity in the large-scale production of collars is obtained.

The means for holding the collar structure, the adjusting means for the end pieces of the holding device, the locating elements, the holding elements and the various elements of the blank inserting table etc. may obviously be modified in many respects without deviating from the spirit and Scope of the present invention. Obviously a holding device according to the invention may be provided with several different locating elements for cooperation with correspondingly different holding elements on several apparatus. The holding device according to the invention may also be useful in the manufacture of articles other than collars, for example cuffs, whenever similar problems arise in connection with the manufacture of such other articles.

It will further be obvious from the above statements that the use of the holding device according to the invention is not restricted to holding a one-ply or multiply work piece in the guiding means of automatic sewing machines and in applicator means for foldline determining elements. In accordance with the particular collar making method applied in a particular workshop the location of the contour or of the foldline or of both may be effected preliminarily by increasing or similar marking, the final establishment of the contour and/or the final application of the foldline determining means taking place in a subsequent working step in which the preliminary crease or other marking serves as a guide. Obviously the holding device according to the invention may be used equally well in connection with such devices for the preliminary marking of the location of the contour and the foldline.

What I claim is:

1. Holding device for use in the manufacture of collars, comprising a bar, two spaced arms extending from glide-pieces slidably arranged on opposed end portions of said bar, means for adjusting one of said glide-pieces to any of a plurality of fixed positions, spring means urging the other glide-piece outwardly on the bar from a fixed innermost position and means on said arms for holding a collar blank between said arms.

2. Holding device for use in the manufacture of collars, comprising a bar, two spaced arms extending from glide-pieces slidably arranged on opposed end portions of said bar, means for adjusting one of said glide-pieces to any of a plurality of fixed positions, spring means urging the other glide piece outwardly on the bar from a fixed innermost position, cam follower means on the free end face of the last-named glide-piece for cooperation with external cam means, means on said arms for holding a collar blank between said arms, and locating means on said bar.

3. Holding device for use in the manufacture of collars, comprising a bar, two spaced arms having transversely beaded free end edges and extending from glidepieces slidably arranged on opposed end portions of said bar, means for adjusting one of said glide-pieces to any of'a plurality of fixed positions, spring means urging the other'glide piece outwardly on the bar from a fixed innermost position, cam follower means on the free end face of the last-named glide-piece for cooperation with external cam means, needles on said arms for holding a collar blank between said arms, cap means resiliently urged towards a position to cover said needles, and locating means on said bar.

4. Holding device for use in the manufacture of collars, comprising, a bar, two spaced arms extending from glide-pieces slidably arranged on opposed end portions of said bar, means for adjusting one of said glide-pieces to any of a plurality of fixed positions, spring means urging the other glide piece outwardly on the bar from a fixed innermost position, cam follower means on the free end face of the last-named glide-piece for cooperation with external cam means, and means on said arms for holding a collar blank between said arms.

5. Holding device for use in the manufacture of collars, comprising a bar, two spaced arms having transversely beaded free end edges and extending from glidepieces slidably arranged on opposed end portions of said bar, means for adjusting one of said glide-pieces to any of a plurality of fixed positions, spring means urging the other glide piece outwardly on the bar from a fixed innermost position, cam follower means on the free end face of the last-named glide-piece for cooperation with external cam means, needles on said arms for holding a collar blank between said arms, and cap means resiliently urged towards a position to cover said needles.

6. Holding device for use in the manufacture of collars comprising a single bar, two spaced arms extending from said bar in fixed angular relationship thereto, means for adjusting one of said arms lengthwise of said bar to any of a plurality of fixed positions, means on said arms for holding a collar blank freely expanded between said arms, means permitting limited sliding displacement of the other one of said arm lengthwise of the bar between blank inserting and blank stretching limits and spring means adjacent the point of attachment of said other arm to said bar for urging said other arm toward its blank stretching limit.

7. Collar blank tensioning unit comprising a blank holder and a holder loading table, said blank holder comprising a bar, a pair of spaced holder arms extending from said bar, means for attaching the opposed ends of a collar blank each to one of said holder arms, one of said holder arms being shiftable along said bar to a blank tensioning position farther away from the other holder arm, and means holding said shiftable holder arm in its blank tensioning position, said holder loading table comprising a support and means on said support shifting said shiftable holder arm along said bar.

8. Collar blank tensioning unit comprising a blank holder and a holder loading table, said blank holder comprising a bar, a pair of spaced holder arms extending from and slidable on said bar, means for gripping one of the opposed ends of a collar blank on each of said holder arms, and means for locking at least one of said holder arms against sliding movement along said bar, said holder loading table comprising a support, spaced end pieces on said support each provided with fulcrum means adapted to receive and support the free end of one of said holder arms of the blank holder upon insertion thereof into said loading table and means on said end pieces adapted to bring about relative sliding movement of said holder arms on said bar upon insertion of said blank holder into said loading table, thereby to tension a collar blank gripped at opposed ends by said gripping means.

9. Collar blank tensioning unit comprising a blank holding device and a holder loading table, said blank holding device comprising a bar, two spaced arms extending from glide-pieces slidably arranged on opposed end portions of said bar, means for adjusting one of said glide-pieces to any of a plurality of fixed positions, spring means urging the other glide piece outwardly on the bar from a fixed innermost position, and means on said arms for holding a collar blank between said arms, said holder loading table comprising a table structure comprising spaced end pieces adapted upon insertion of said blank holding device to support the ends of said device, forl; means on each of said end pieces adapted to receive and support the free end edges of said arms While the holding device is being inserted into the table, and cam means adapted to cooperate With said other glide-piece for shifting sai glide-piece to its fixed innermost position when the holding device is inserted into the table.

10. Collar blank tensioning unit comprising a blank holding device and a holder loading table, said blank holding device comprising a bar, two spaced arms extending from glide-pieces slidably arranged on opposed end portions of said bar, means for adjusting one of said glidepieccs to any of a plurality of fixed positions, spring means urging the other glide-piece outwardly on said bar from a tired inner-most position, cam follower means on the free end face of said other glide-piece for cooperation with cam means on said holder loading table, and means on said for holding a collar blank between said arms, said holder loading table comprising a table structure having spaced end pieces adapted upon insertion of said blank holding device to support the ends of said device, fork means on each of said end pieces adapted to receive and support the free end edges of said arms while the holding device is being inserted into the table, and cam means adapted to cooperate with said cam follower means on the free end face of said other glide-piece for shifting said glide-piece to its fixed innermost position when the holding device is inserted into the table.

ll. Collar blank tensioning unit comprising a blank holding device and a holder loading table, said blank holding device comprising a bar, two spaced arms having transversely beaded free end edges and extending from glide-pieces slidably arranged on opposed end portions of said bar, means for adjusting one of said glide-pieces to any of a plurality of fixed positions, spring means urging the other glide-piece outwardly on the bar from a fixed innermost position, cam follower means on the free end face of said other glide-piece for cooperation with cam means on said holder loading table, needles on said arms for holding a. collar blank between said arms, and cap means resiliently urged towards a position to cover said needles, said holder loading table comprising a table structure having spaced end pieces adapted upon insertion of said blank holding device to support the ends of said device, fork means on each of said end pieces to receive and support the beaded free end edges of said arms while the holding device is being inserted into the table, cam means adapted to cooperate with said cam foilower means on the free end face of said other glidc-piece for shifting said glidepicce to its fixed innermost position when the holding device is inserted into the table, and cap lifting means on each of said end pieces adapted to lift said caps to uncover said needles when the holding evice is inserted into the table.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS l,789,l44 Kubias Ian. 13, 1931 2,639,841 Liebowitz May 26, 1953 2,647,036 Wood July 28, 1953 FOREIGN PATENTS 500,092 Belgium Feb. 29, 1952 

